(Minghui.org) A married couple in their 70s were sentenced to 4.5 and 7 years for practicing Falun Gong. They have appealed the verdicts and still await the result.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Liu Chenjin and Ms. Shi Yueying, of Qingdao City, Shandong Province, were arrested on June 25, 2021.

While Ms. Shi was released on the next day and placed on residential surveillance due to her physical condition, Mr. Liu remained in custody.

He was first held a detention facility in Laoshan District for a few days and then transferred to the Chengyang Detention Center, before being taken to the Qingdao City No.1 Detention Center in late July.

A staff member from the local procuratorate called Ms. Shi on October 8 and summoned her to answer some questions three days later. She was suffering dangerously high blood pressure and numbness in her legs. It’s not clear whether she complied.

The Bei District Court later sentenced Mr. Liu to 7 years and Ms. Shi to 4.5 years. The authorities at one point carried Ms. Shi to the hospital for a physical examination, in preparation to detain her.

The couple have appealed with the Qingdao City Intermediate Court, but are yet to hear back from it.